SPECIAL CHAPTER 2 | UKIYOTO BOOK

Max

GINISING kami ni Summer nang mas maaga kaysa sa karaniwang gising namin sa umaga. Pagod pa kaming lahat mula sa biyahe pabalik ng Pilipinas kaya hirap na hirap siyang palabasin kaming lahat. Kung hindi lang siya maingay at dinig hanggang kabilang kanto ang boses, hindi na sana namin papansinin. Panay pa ang pagkanta sa hallway na akala mo nasa isang Broadway show na gaya ni Brooklyn.

Nakakarindi.

Minsan iniisip ko kung anak ko ba talaga si Summer pero naalala ko na gano'n din pala si Bea. Mas high maintenance nga lang itong anak namin. Mga tripleng Bea na pinagsama-sama kaya parang hindi nauubusan ng energy. Twenty-one hours and a half ang flight namin mula Connecticut hanggang sa NAIA tapos another hour and a half pauwi dito sa Batangas. At wala lang iyon kay Summer na panay pa rin ang pagkanta kahit na gising na kaming lahat.

"What is this Sum? It's too early for your concert. Can you do it later?" Narinig ko na sita ni Brooklyn sa kakambal niya.

"Vocalizations palang iyon, Brook. Mamaya pa ang tunay na concert." I tried to conceal my laughter. Ang aga-aga na namang patawa nitong anak ko. Nakita ko na tiniklop ni Summer ang malaking pamaypay na gamit saka nilipon kami sa living room. Pinagpawisan din siya sa pagiging maligalig. Alam naman niyang hindi gaya ng panahon sa US ang meron dito sa Pinas. "I summoned all of you because... charot lang magba-vlog tayo. Family vlog gaya doon sa ibang family sa social media natin."

Akmang tatakas si Brooklyn ngunit nahinto nang ipadyak ni Summer ang isang paa sa kahoy na sahig ng bahay namin.

"What is our topic, sweetie?" tanong ni Bea sa anak namin.

Ngumiti si Summer at hindi makakaila ang pagiging magkamukha ng aking mag-ina. Summer has Bea's eyes and hair - the red hair. Inakbayan ko lang si Bea at sumingit sa tabi ko si Summer saka pinakita ang mga tanong na itatanong niya sa amin.

"You'll ask these questions, and in the end, we leave a message for your birthday. How about Brooklyn? Your birthday is his too, sweetie."

"Maraming magbibigay ng message kay Brooklyn, Dad. Sikat siya at maraming artista na friends. I'm his twin sister who's making my way in showbiz through him, but I want to be known as Summer Lewis, not his sister only."

Ayokong maniwala na hindi pa kilala at walang kaibigan itong si Summer. She's known for being bubbly and has no bearing. Sobrang Ms. Sociable siya at isa sa mga dahilan kaya dinadayo ngayon ang Elixir.

"All right, pagbigyan na natin si Summer sa gusto niya." Of course, I can say no to my only daughter. Kahit na sobrang ingay niya halos araw-araw. Walang buhay ang bahay kapag hindi naririnig ang boses niyang abot hanggang kabilang kanto yata. "Brooklyn, just this once, please?"

"Okay..." Pagpayag ni Brooklyn.

"Yehey!" Tili ni Summer saka pinakilala kami sa team niya na lumipad din pa-Pilipinas ang ilan para magyari itong family vlog namin.

Marami na naging content itong anak ko at madalas kaming dalawa ang magkasama sa mga vlog niya. May time na si Bea ang inaaya niya kapag shopping at cooking vlogs. Laman lang si Brooklyn ng vlog niya kapag nanonood kami ng Broadway show nito kung saan-saang bansa. Backstage scene at quick interview sa mga casts ang kalimitan na content kapag ang kapatid niya ang kasama. Iyong fans ni Brooklyn, fans na rin ni Summer at ngayon na nagbabalak itong pumasok sa showbiz, nakasuporta naman kami ni Bea kahit na anong mangyari.

"Is this a tell all interview, Summie?" Narinig ko na tanong kay Summer ng isa sa mga team niya.

"Sort off. It depends if my family is willing to answer all the questions. I'll choose na lang if we need to maintain our normal upload length."

Summer knows what she's doing and loves it. Masaya siya sa ginagawa at iyon naman ang importante sa amin na mga magulang niya. As long as my princess is happy, I'm fine, but if someone tries to steal that happiness, I'll defy all the odds and consequences just to protect her. She's the source of my happiness and my life. Kung sino 'man ang magtangkang manakit sa kanya o sa buong pamilya ko ay makilala ang kung sino ako.

"Summer," tawag ko sa anak ko.

"Yes Dad?" Hindi ako nagsalita at basta na lang tinaas ang pantalon niya para matakpan ng pusod. "Dad! It's uso kaya. Don't be so, KJ."

"Me? KJ?" I arched my brow at her.

"Joke lang, Dad. Peace be with you. Labyu!"

Makulit, maingay, medyo pasaway ngunit may kinatatakutan din naman si Summer. Iyon ang maiwan mag-isa at magalit ako sa kanya. She's definitely my girl and Bea accepted already the fact that our daughter is also my boss too.

Pagkatapos ma-check ang mga camera at ilaw, nag-proceed na kami sa recording.

"Hi, everyone! As requested by many, I invited my family for a tell-all interview. We will talk about ourselves, answer questions that I prepared, and have a glimpse of our birthday party scenes here in Casa Lewis."

Naka-ilang ulit yata sa intro si Summer bago niya kami naipakilala isa-isa. Madadali lang unang mga tanong niya na nasagot naman naming lahat ng mabilis. As the shooting goes by, questions becomes serious and it's unlike of Summer. Nawala ang pagka-kwela niya at naging seryoso sa unang pagkakataon.

"Is our existence planned or not?" tanong ni Summer sa amin ni Bea. Nagkatinginan kaming mag-asawa. All this years, lagi lang namin sinasabi sa mga anak namin ay iyong magagandang side love story namin ni Bea. Leaving the breaking point, painful seperation, and those frustrating moments in our lives.

"It's unexpected." Pagsagot ni Bea sa tanong ng bunso namin. "When I met your Dad, it was a whirlwind romance. Mabilis ang lahat at nakakalunod. We separated, got back together, got engaged, and separated again. Nang umalis ang Dad niyo saka ko palang nalaman na buntis ako. Then, there's an offer to go to Scotland. Torn at first, but in the end, I still choose your Dad because I love him more than I need him. And choosing him is also choosing you both. I love my life now with all of you by my side."

For the first time after a long time, I finally heard Bea's reason for coming to New York instead of going after her dream. I smiled at my wife, which garnered a crazy reaction from our children.

"I smell another sibling..." tukso ni Brooklyn sa amin.

"Paiiyakin niyo na naman Dad niyo," dagdag na tukso naman ni Bea sa akin.

"Why did you raise us differently? Bakit kay Brooklyn ayos lang sundin ang kanyang pangarap? Bakit ako sinabi niyo na pag-isipan ko maigi?"

Nagkatinginan kami sandali ni Bea.

"Ako ba ang sasagot o ikaw?" Bea asked,

"Ako na." Huminga ako ng malalim bago nagsalita. "Magkaiba kasi kayo kahit kambal kayo. Brooklyn has a sense of control which you slightly have. You are sociable while your brother is not so much. Kailangan namin sabihin iyon kasi alam namin ipipilit mo ipakita sa amin ang mga dahilan bakit kailangan ka namin payagan na gawin ang gusto mo. You love showing off, Summer."

"That's why if I'm sick, she's sick too. Worst, I stayed home and healed while you asked mom and Dad to bring you to the hospital." Brooklyn interjected, which made us laugh. Hindi sa connected ang damdamin nila dahil kambal sila. Maybe it's more like they feel each other in times like that. Pero madalas, papansin lang talaga si Summer.

"Hindi kasi ako napapansin ng parents natin,"

"Anong hindi ang sinasabi mo diyan, Summer? Sa ingay mo na triple ng ingay ko, malabong hindi ka namin pansin."

Summer giggled loudly. Totoo naman ang sinabi ni Bea. Malabo talaga hindi namin mapansin itong anak namin na ubod ng ingay.

"Next question na," untag sa amin lahat ni Summer. "this is for you Dad. Bakit si Brooklyn hinayaan mo na magperform sa Broadway after niya tanggihan ang Elixir?"

"It's his dream," I answered. "To perform in front of a huge crowd. I don't want to hinder him from achieving his life goals. Besides, I can manage all the branches well so far."

"Will you give Elixir to me instead?"

"Nice try, princess, but no," sumimangot si Summer. Tumawa naman si Brooklyn at Bea. "you can have your mom's business if you want."

Bea have her own cosmetics company. Isa sa mga model ng mga products nila ay si Summer. Gamay na gamay na ni Summer doon kaya tingin ko mas okay na iyon ang kuhain niya kaysa ang Elixir.

"Mom won't stop working, naman,"

"She will, right, love?"

Nagkibit-balikat lang si Bea saka tumawa. Nag-react na naman ang mga anak namin ng lambingin ko si Bea sa harap nila. They can't stand it. Sometimes I held my wife's hand in secret and kissed her behind their backs. Gaya ngayon, pa-sikreto ko hinawakan ang kamay ni Bea. I intertwined our fingers and never let it go all throughout the interview.

"See, Dad?"

"Next question na," I said to my daughter. Ipipilit talaga ang gusto kahit 'di naman pwede. Nakikita ko na tumatawa rin sa harap ang buong team ni Summer. Hindi na nga ito interview. Mas tamang sabihin na kulitan bonding na lang itong ginagawa namin.

PAGKATAPOS ng interview at video message namin, iniwan namin sina Brook at Sum sa bahay at naglakad-lakad kami sa may beach area ni Bea. Magkahawak kamay kaming dalawa habang naglalakad at bawat masalubong namin na kapwa residente ay binabati rin namin pabalik. Matagal-tagal din kaming hindi nakauwi dahil sa mga schedule na hindi nagtutugma. When we finally fixed our schedule, nag-booked na agad ako ng ticket pauwi para lang makulayan namin bakasyon na ito.

"Do you remember that spot?" tanong sa akin ni Bea. "that's our spot. Iyong tinayuan mo ng sand castle ng kambal." Turo ni Bea at napangiti nang maalala iyon. Inaya ako ni Bea na lumapit doon upang hanapin ang marking namin. "Dapat sinama natin yung kambal para makapagtayo ulit ng sand castle."

"Brooklyn is sleeping and I bet Summer too. Ang aga niya tayo ginising kaya baka plakda na ang isang iyon ngayon."

"Sabagay, ngayon lang nag bakasyon ang dalawang iyon. Sobrang busy nila kaya pati pagtulog ay nalilimutan na,"

"That's why we need to remind them always. Rest is necessary and luxury."

"Coming from a workaholic guy like you."

"Noon." I corrected her. Marahan ko siyang kinabig palapit sa akin saka niyakap. "Ever since you came to New York and chose me, my life's changed. Lalo na noong ibalita mo na buntis ka. I'm the happiest man on Earth when I felt their first kick. I panicked when you said they were not moving for a day."

Bea chuckled softly. "Iyon ang pinaka-OA mong side. You called everyone and asked every doctor you knew if it's normal."

"You cannot blame me. It's our first child, and it happened that they were twins."

"We're blessed." I have to agree with my wife. Iba ang level ng disappointment namin sa false positive na findings ng doktor noon. We're blessed indeed. Brooklyn and Summer were beautiful children who came unexpectedly into our lives.

"You know, all these years with you, I thought you just chose me because you were pregnant then. We rarely discuss your decision to return to New York bearing the news about your pregnancy."

Kinalas ni Bea ang pakakayakap ko sa kanya saka humarap siya sa akin.

"Iyon ang iniisip mo hanggang ngayon? Na kailangan lang kita kaya ikaw ang pinili ko?" Tumango ako bilang tugon. "Grabe ka talaga, Max Lewis. Syempre mahal kita kaya ikaw ang pinili ko. I may got confused pero hindi dahil 'di na kita mahal."

"I thought it's because Dominic got your back when I chose to leave back then,"

"No."

"No?" Takang tanong ko. "B-but he was in our house, and you're talking to him. I heard him confess to you,"

"So you came home at that time? Bakit hindi mo sinabi sa akin? Does Lola know? Did Aila see you?"

"Lola knows; Aila knows too. They saw me, and I chose to leave instead of facing you."

"You could have stayed and hear me say that I still have you. Kahit malabo ang lahat, alam ko na tayo pa rin at may isang ikaw na matiyagang naghihintay sa akin. You're that kind of man, Max. You're a patient man who doesn't know the word give up." Yumakap siya sa akin saka tiningala ako. "Kaibigan lang tingin ko kay Dominic at hindi iyon magbabago kahit piliin ko ang career na alok niya sa Scotland. I will never love again if it wasn't you, Max. We just got lost in translations back then but here we are now, happily married."

"Are you happy?"

"Masayang-masaya ako -" Hindi ko na hinayaang tapusin ang dapat na sasabihin niya. I leaned down and reached for her lips. I kissed like it was the very first time we did it. "I love you," Bea said in between our kisses.

Huminto ako pinagtama ang aming mga mata. We smiled at each other. I claimed her lips again and we didn't mind the people around us. For me, it's just Bea and I and we owned the world for a moment before the waves kissed our legs. Tumili si Bea dahil doon saka tumatawang yumakap sa akin. Hinawakan ko ang kamay niya saka inayang tumakbo pabalik sa bahay namin.

Bago pa kami makapasok sa loob, huminto ako hinila ko si Bea at kinulong siya sa aking bisig.

"I love you, Mrs. Lewis."

She smiled.

"Ganito pa rin kaya tayo five years from now?"

"Yeah. We will remain like this forever and always." I smiled at her. "This I promise to you. You are that summer in Brooklyn who put colors into my life. Your my answered prayers, ¡mi vida y nuestros niños, nuestro pedacito de cielo."